Conon Arămescu-Donici (; February 2, 1837 – August 7, 1922) was Metropolitan-Primate of the

Romanian Orthodox Church The Romanian Orthodox Church (ROC; , ), or Romanian Patriarchate, is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in full communion with other Eastern Orthodox Christian denomination, Christian churches, and one of the nine patriarchates in the East ...

between 1912 and 1918. In conflict with the authorities of modern

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

, he was forced to resign due to his

collaboration Collaboration (from Latin ''com-'' "with" + ''laborare'' "to labor", "to work") is the process of two or more people, entities or organizations working together to complete a task or achieve a goal. Collaboration is similar to cooperation. The ...

with

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

occupation troops during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Biography

Born in Urzici-Arămești,

Neamț County Neamț County () is a county ( județ) of Romania, in the historic region of Moldavia, with the county seat at Piatra Neamț. The county takes its name from the Neamț River. Demographics Population In 2011, it had a population of 470,766 ...

(the state of

Moldavia Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially in ...

), into a family of priests, Arămescu-Donici studied at the

Târgu Neamț Târgu Neamț (; , , , ) is a town in Neamț County, Western Moldavia, Romania, on the river Neamț. It had, , a population of 18,029. Three villages are administered by the town: Blebea, Humulești, and Humuleștii Noi. History Originally ...

and Socola Seminaries, then at the

University of Iași The Alexandru Ioan Cuza University (; acronym: UAIC) is a public university located in , Romania. Founded by an 1860 decree of Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza, under whom the former was converted to a university, the University of , as it was named ...

, graduating in Literature in 1877. He was tonsured a monk at

Neamț Monastery The Neamț Monastery () is a Romanian Orthodox Church, Romanian Orthodox religious settlement, one of the oldest and most important of its kind in Romania. It was built in the 15th century, and it is an example of medieval Moldavian architectur ...

and later became a

hierodeacon A hierodeacon (Greek: Ἱεροδιάκονος, ''Ierodiákonos''; Slavonic: ''Ierodiakón''), sometimes translated "deacon-monk", in Eastern Orthodox Christianity and all other Churches that follow Byzantine Rite is a monk who has been ordained a ...

at Socola Monastery. He was a teacher at National School of

Iași Iași ( , , ; also known by other #Etymology and names, alternative names), also referred to mostly historically as Jassy ( , ), is the Cities in Romania, third largest city in Romania and the seat of Iași County. Located in the historical ...

, and then at Normal School, between 1877 and 1880. Between 1880 and 1885, he studied Theology at Czernowitz Francis-Joseph University, in

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

, gaining recognition as

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (DD or DDiv; ) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity (academic discipline), divinity (i.e., Christian theology and Christian ministry, ministry or other theologies. The term is more common in the Englis ...

."Arămescu-Donici, Conon", entry in

Mircea Păcurariu Mircea Păcurariu (30 July 1932 – 13 January 2021) was a Romanian theologian, historian and priest in the Romanian Orthodox Church. Biography Born in Ruși, Hunedoara County, he was the son of the village priest. He enrolled in the History ...

, ''Dicționarul Teologilor Români'', Editura Univers Enciclopedic, Bucharest, 1996 Arămescu-Donici was elected on February 8, 1902 to be the Bishop of Huși (enthroned March 3, 1902). On February 14, 1912, he was elected by the Romanian Synod to the office of Metropolitan-Primate, being enthroned five days later, on February 19. Metropolitan Conon's most problematic stances were expressed during World War I, a period of political division. In 1916, Romania joined the Entente, but rapidly lost the

Battle of Bucharest The Battle of Bucharest, also known as the '' Argeş– Neajlov Defensive Operation'' in Romania, was the last battle of the Romanian Campaign of 1916 in World War I, in which the Central Powers' combatants, led by General Erich von Falkenhayn ...

to the

Central Powers The Central Powers, also known as the Central Empires,; ; , ; were one of the two main coalitions that fought in World War I (1914–1918). It consisted of the German Empire, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulga ...

: their armies occupied the city and forced the government to move the capital to Iași. Conon, who stayed behind in occupied Bucharest, was persuaded by the German authorities to sign a letter to the soldiers and the Orthodox faithful in Moldavia, urging them to give up the fight against Germany. The letter, written by author

Gala Galaction Gala Galaction (; the pen name of Grigore or Grigorie Pișculescu ; April 16, 1879—March 8, 1961) was a Romanian Orthodox clergyman, theologian, writer, journalist, left-wing activist, as well as a political figure of the People's Republic ...

at the request of collaborationist politician Virgil Arion, was later modified by the German authorities without Galaction's consent, and dropped as

airborne leaflet propaganda Airborne leaflet dropping is a type of propaganda where leaflets ( flyers) are scattered in the air, normally by filling cluster bombs that open in midair with thousands of leaflets. Military forces have used aircraft to drop leaflets to attem ...

over the Romanian trenches.

Nicolae Iorga Nicolae Iorga (17 January 1871 – 27 November 1940) was a historian, politician, literary critic, memoirist, Albanologist, poet and playwright. Co-founder (in 1910) of the Democratic Nationalist Party (PND), he served as a member of Parliament ...

, Ecaterina Vaum, ''Corespondență: documente literare'',

Editura Minerva Editura Minerva is one of the largest publishing houses in Romania. Located in Bucharest, it is known, among other things, for publishing classic Romanian literature, children's books, and scientific books. The company was founded in Bucharest in ...

, Bucharest, 1984, p.21 After the war, accused of betrayal, Conon resigned on January 1, 1919, being replaced by

Miron Cristea Miron Cristea (; monastic name of Elie Cristea ; 20 July 1868 – 6 March 1939) was a Romanian cleric and politician. A bishop in Hungarian-ruled Transylvania, Cristea was elected Metropolitan-Primate of the Orthodox Church of the newly unifie ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aramescu-Donici, Conon Romanian Orthodox metropolitan bishops People from Neamț County Alexandru Ioan Cuza University alumni Romanian schoolteachers Romanian people of World War I 1837 births 1922 deaths